I'm a Louisiana native currently living and working in New Orleans. I'm originally from Lafayette where I received a BFA in printmaking from The University of Lafayette in 2011. After that I decided to make a big change of location and attended grad school at the University of Iowa where I earned an MA and MFA in 2014 and 2015 respectively. I couldn't handle the snow in Iowa City, so upon finishing school I moved back to Louisiana but suddenly found myself without a print shop. For the previous eight years or so I made almost exclusively woodcuts and engravings so I was at a loss for what to do without a printing press when a friend suggested I try my hand at painting.

Painting was always something I admired in an "I could never pull that off" kind of way so it took me a while to ease into it. Once I became confident I found that I could both emulate and break down the types of textures, patterns, and shapes that I could do in my woodcuts while adding new purely painterly elements. At this point I'm not really sure if I'm a printerly painter or a painterly printmaker but I feel good about both.

Describe yourself in one word. Observant

What do you love the most about creating art in New Orleans? What particular part of your immediate environment, in your neighborhood specifically influences your work?

Describe your creative process. Are there any rituals or rites of passage you exercise before you begin a new piece? I get really into the boring parts of my process. I begin every new painting by building the canvas from scratch. Then I prime each canvas with layers and layers of thick house paint which takes forever to dry and gives me some downtime to meditate on ideas and do some sketches. Once I've gotten the surface of my canvases built up to my satisfaction I can finally put on a pot of coffee and a podcast and start the painting proper.

Where do you draw inspiration? I'm inspired by a lot of things I see while just walking around. I love to include local plants from my backyard, rooms in my friends' houses, things that I see all the time. Thematically I think about folklore, ghost stories, history, and literature. A lot of my paintings lean towards the weird or eerie, so I keep a big stack of "nonfiction" books on the paranormal and UFOs on hand. If I'm ever feeling totally uninspired I can flip through those and get a few ideas.

Who are your artistic influences or gurus? I love the German Expressionists, Pre-Raphealites, and Outsider Art. American printmakers like Warrington Colescott and Sid Chafetz. Literary figures like Flannery O'Connor, Shirley Jackson, and William Faulkner.In New Orleans, art and music go hand in hand. What type of music, band or song lyric best describes your work? Hm, I guess maybe like if CCR partied with Black Sabbath?

What is your favorite time of day/day of the week/month of the year? Definitely evening/dusk in the summer and fall.

What is something people don’t know about you? A fun fact. I'm a big nerd about poodles, my mom has two of them and is always threatening to get a third.

All works listed online are available to be viewed at Where Y’Art Gallery by appointment.

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